Conroe city officials are launching an investigation into a city council member’s votes related to the city’s new $107 million Hyatt Regency Hotel and Convention Center, a project that included a $9 million contract for his employer.
City administrator Gary Scott said the city’s legal department is working with an outside law firm to look into Councilman Todd Yancey’s voting history on the project.
Since Yancey was sworn into office in November 2020, he has voted in favor of more than 30 separate items related to the hotel, including a bond sale that is helping finance the project and invoice payments to the project’s general contractor, according to minutes of council meetings. That general contractor, in turn, subcontracted with and made payments to SRM Concrete, the company that employs Yancey.
Yancey said he did nothing improper and he is participating in the investigation because “I like to be very transparent.”
He said the investigation is strictly about politics.
“After full review of the facts, my lawyer and I have full confidence that any administrative or investigative agency would conclude the same results,” Yancy said during an Oct. 26 council meeting. “I also believe this is a conspiracy by those who view me as a political opponent and threat.”
Scott did not release a timeline for the investigation, and Yancey did not respond to attempts by the Courier to connect with his legal counsel.
Yancey, who told The Courier SRM Concrete’s Conroe location poured all concrete for the hotel, signed a conflict-of-interest affidavit in November 2020, months after taking office.
According to that affidavit, Yancey disclosed that he had a “substantial interest” in SRM Concrete and receives more than 10 percent of his income from the company.
The affidavit also states Yancey was to “abstain from any discussion, vote or decision involving” the company, including contracts.
Calls for transparency at City Hall
Other council members said they believe the investigation is warranted.
“Councilman Yancey stated this is a conspiracy,” said Councilman Howard Wood. “OK, let’s deploy a fair, third party objective investigator. Let’s find the facts. Then we’ll have 100 percent confirmation our government is operating in an honest ethical manner. What’s interesting is why is a portion of the council supportive of transparency and a portion is apparently not?”
Councilman Harry Hardman said the investigation is in line with others the city launched with former councilmembers and staff.
“This is no more or less than what we have done before,” Hardman said.
Councilwoman Marsha Porter said she takes conflict of interest issues seriously. In 2011, the city purchased Porter’s home on Our Lane for $361,500 to allow for construction of a new road between League Line Road and FM 3083.
Porter, who was a council member at the time, recused herself from all discussions and voting. She also hired an attorney for the negotiations and sale of the home to the city.
“Elected officials should be held to a higher standard,” Porter said. “I take my position of being an elected official very serious so I want to do the best job I can.”
History of hotel project in Conroe
Yancey’s family founded Conroe Concrete, which became known as Yancey Ready Mix, in 1969. SRM Concrete bought the company in 2018, and Yancey now works in sales for SRM.
Yancey said his sales territory is between Willis and Madisonville, not Conroe.
In July, the company’s website listed Yancey as the Conroe-area salesman. However, as of August, his name no longer appears on the firm’s website.
In May 2020, the council awarded DPR Construction of California the design-build contract for the project. DPR later hired subcontractors, including SRM Concrete. Those subcontractors did not require council approval, as they were chosen by DPR.
SRM began pouring the concrete for the project at the end of 2021. The city at the start of 2022 began paying invoices submitted by DPR for concrete pouring, with Yancey voting on those payments.
The Hyatt Regency Hotel and Convention Center, which opened in May, is the largest taxpayer-funded economic development project in the city, a project that has been dogged by cost overruns and multimillion-dollar taxpayer bailouts due to missed economic projections.
Financial woes have plagued the project, with its construction cost ballooning from $86 million in 2020 to more than $107 million in 2022. Days before the hotel opened, the council was forced to pay $5 million in operating costs that were not included in the budget.
